A plain, factual overview of how the 11+ admissions process works at a range of London Grammar and Independent Schools, plus Buckinghamshire and Slough Grammar Schools — how many stages, what's tested, and the format of the papers. Collated from each school's own admissions pages as a quick reference while you're researching options.
State Grammar Schools select on academic ability through entrance exams. Most use a multi-stage process: an initial multiple-choice test, followed by a written stage for shortlisted candidates.
GL Assessment multiple-choice papers covering Verbal Reasoning, Non-Verbal Reasoning and English.
Written papers in English (comprehension and writing) and Maths, set by the school. Only the top-scoring candidates from Round 1 are invited.
Boys sit multiple-choice tests in Maths and English on a single test day. No creative writing component. Results determine eligibility for a place.
Multiple-choice Maths and Verbal Reasoning papers, marked first. Only candidates ranked in the top 700 go on to Stage 2.
English paper marked for the top 700 candidates only — comprehension and creative writing. Offers based on combined ranking across both stages.
Multiple-choice English and Maths papers (around an hour each), set by the school. Used to shortlist candidates — top scorers (around 450) go through to Stage 2.
Written, open-answer English and Maths papers, marked by the school. Final rankings based on Stage 2 performance.
Shared Selective Eligibility Test, common to all Sutton Grammar Schools. Multiple-choice English and Maths, around 40-50 minutes each. No separate Verbal or Non-Verbal Reasoning sections.
Written English (extended/creative writing) and Maths. Boys' group (Wilson's, Wallington CG, Sutton Grammar) and girls' group (Nonsuch, Wallington Girls') sit separate joint papers.
Buckinghamshire and Slough each run their own shared entrance test, with results used across a group of Grammar Schools.
Buckinghamshire operates a fully selective system of 13 Grammar Schools, all using a single shared entrance test — the Buckinghamshire Secondary Transfer Test (STT). A child only needs to sit this once to be considered for any of the 13 schools. The test consists of two multiple-choice papers (Verbal Reasoning, Non-Verbal Reasoning, English and Maths, GL Assessment style), each around 60 minutes including instructions and unmarked practice questions. There is no creative writing task as part of the test itself.
Slough is a separate local authority from Buckinghamshire, with its own group of four Grammar Schools sharing a single common 11+ exam. A child sits one set of tests to be considered for all four. The exam consists of two papers: Verbal Skills (English and Verbal Reasoning) and Non-Verbal Skills (Maths and Non-Verbal/Spatial Reasoning).
Independent schools set their own entrance assessments. Some use a computer-based pre-test (such as the ISEB Common Pre-Test) to shortlist candidates before written papers; others run their own single-day assessments.
No pre-test. Every registered candidate sits written papers in English and Maths. English includes comprehension and creative writing. Shortlisted candidates are invited to interview, which includes further verbal English and Maths questions.
Single paper-based assessment day: Maths and Non-Verbal Reasoning (45 min), English and Verbal Reasoning (40 min) — both multiple-choice — plus Creative Comprehension (20 min) and Creative Writing (20 min). Around half of candidates are invited to interview afterwards, with parents attending.
Same format as Habs Girls (new shared assessment from 2026): Maths and Non-Verbal Reasoning, English and Verbal Reasoning (multiple-choice), plus Creative Comprehension and Creative Writing, all in one sitting. Around half of candidates invited to interview, with parents attending.
Candidates sit three written papers: Mathematics, English, and General Comprehension, followed by a 20-minute interview assessing creativity, engagement and independent thought.
All candidates take the ISEB Common Pre-Test (online, adaptive), registered through ISEB.
Candidates who do well in the pre-test are invited back to sit written English and Mathematics papers at the school in January.
Three written papers, 45 minutes each: English, Mathematics, and the Merchant Taylors' General Paper (a school-specific paper testing creativity and lateral thinking, with no published specimen papers). Plus a short online test: 20-minute Maths and 10-minute Verbal Reasoning. Shortlisted candidates are invited to a 20-minute interview in January; top performers may also be invited to an Academic Scholarship Assessment Day.
English (1 hour) and Mathematics (1 hour). The English paper covers comprehension and creative writing — typically a comprehension passage followed by a creative writing task, often based on a picture stimulus, which may be fiction or non-fiction.
Around 2 hours. Group activities assess how candidates work in practical settings; all candidates are also interviewed in small groups.
A group of independent girls' schools across London that share a single entrance assessment, so candidates only sit one test regardless of how many member schools they apply to. The assessment is 100 minutes, online, taken in six parts: 20 min Maths, 10 min Non-Verbal Reasoning, 20 min English, 10 min Verbal Reasoning, a 30-minute break, then 15 min Problem Solving and 25 min Creative Comprehension. The English section covers comprehension, spelling and Grammar — there is no extended writing. After the assessment, candidates may be invited to interview; some schools (such as Godolphin and Latymer, and South Hampstead High School) select for interview based on assessment results, while others interview everyone.
This page will be updated periodically. Admissions formats can and do change — sometimes significantly, as several entries above show. If you spot anything that's changed, or have a question about a specific school, do get in touch.
Some of the language around 11+ exams can feel like its own world. Here are a few terms that come up often.
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